{"product_id":"a-dictionary-of-modern-consternation-paperback","title":"A Dictionary of Modern Consternation - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eBrook McClurg\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWinner of the 2022 Permafrost Prize in Nonfiction \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eA Dictionary of Modern Consternation\u003c\/i\u003e is a genre-bending nonfiction lyric following one family through the years from the financial crisis to the COVID-19 pandemic. In this cheeky dictionary-shaped exploration of how language can often alienate and dehumanize, weakening feelings of community with societal trends that subsume individual lives, Brook McClurg offers a footnote narrative of an international life pursuing the business of words. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e What starts as a lighthearted academic exploration becomes real when the pandemic hits--at the letter P--and the ability to treat each other humanely suddenly has grave consequences. Questioning the ways specialized jargon in language--often corporate, legal, and militaristic in nature--encroaches on our feelings of community and responsibility to one another, McClurg employs an abecedarian format, concealing his meaningful and sensitive explorations of personal strife inside a more formal facade. \u003ci\u003eA Dictionary of Modern Consternation\u003c\/i\u003e reveals its subjective viewpoint and ironic tone over the course of the text, confronting themes of loneliness and isolation, global strife and endless war, and intimacy, love, and family. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e With approximately 500 satirical dictionary entries and 143 flash essays as footnotes, this experimental memoir is filled with satirical definitions, pseudo-aphorisms, and inquisitions into words or phrases. \u003ci\u003eA Dictionary of Modern Consternation\u003c\/i\u003e is for general readers, collectors, book-as-art lovers, and anyone interested in the political economy of language, as well as graduate classes exploring experimental forms.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eBrook McClurg\u003c\/b\u003e is\u003cb\u003e\u003c\/b\u003eassistant professor of nonfiction in the English and Comparative Literature Department at San José State\u003cb\u003e\u003c\/b\u003eUniversity.\u003cb\u003e\u003c\/b\u003eHis creative nonfiction, fiction, and poetry have appeared in \u003ci\u003eCagibi\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eIron Horse Literary Review\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003ePidgeonholes\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eWanderlust\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eExposition Review\u003c\/i\u003e, and others, and his Spanish-language translations have appeared in the \u003ci\u003eLoch Raven Review\u003c\/i\u003e. His essay \"Geometry of Absence\" was listed as a Notable Essay in Best American Essays 2021, and he has received fellowships and residencies from the Fulbright Research Scholars program and Writing By Writers.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 218\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.63 x 8.43 x 5.43 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e June 17, 2024\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Books by splitShops","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51747699425568,"sku":"9781646425624","price":27.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0974\/9764\/5344\/files\/7827879027e8043121723918b5135ddd_788beac8-8278-45a2-bbba-dc34a9c60fe0.webp?v=1779899316","url":"https:\/\/ebocreations.com\/products\/a-dictionary-of-modern-consternation-paperback","provider":"The E-Book Oasis LLC","version":"1.0","type":"link"}